Raise Prices, Keep Clients: Jesse Hernandez on Scaling Without Losing Your Sanity
If you’ve ever wrestled with pricing — worried that raising your rates would scare away clients — Jesse Hernandez has been there.
And in true Jesse fashion, he didn’t just tweak numbers on an invoice… he built a tiered pricing system that actually strengthened his client relationships and created space for better service.
In our latest Strategy, Solutions & Sanity episode, Jesse broke down how he made the leap from construction foreman to people-centered operations consultant, and why scaling smart isn’t about chasing every client who waves a check.
From “Pep Rally” Consulting to Long-Term Impact
Early on, Jesse realized the one-off “pep rally” sessions — the high-energy, one-day workshops — weren’t delivering the change his clients really needed.
Sure, they were fun. But they weren’t transformative.
So he raised his rates for those sessions high enough to make potential clients pause… and start the real conversation about longer-term engagements.
The result?
Most either said, “That’s outside my budget” (which freed his calendar for higher-value work) or they committed to extended contracts where change could actually stick.
The Tiered Pricing Mindset
Instead of a flat rate, Jesse set price tiers based on how booked his calendar was:
Tier 1: Standard pricing for early bookings
Tier 2: Higher pricing once his month filled past a certain threshold
Tier 3: Premium pricing when demand was highest
If clients wanted his time during a busier month, they paid for the priority.
If they could wait until his schedule opened up, they got the lower rate.
This not only protected his availability for existing clients, but also gave him the breathing room to serve them better — without running himself into the ground.
Scaling Through People-Centered Operations
While pricing is part of his strategy, Jesse’s real passion is people.
He’s built his consulting around one question: “How can I better serve you?”
This simple but disarming phrase shifts feedback from vague compliments (“You’re doing great!”) to actionable insight. It also surfaces where leaders might unknowingly be missing the mark.
And that’s Jesse’s specialty — helping organizations humanize their operations so efficiency doesn’t come at the expense of their people.
What Business Owners Can Take Away
Pricing filters clients — The right price attracts the right work and the right people.
Long-term engagements = deeper impact — Don’t sell the pep rally if you want real change.
Know your limits — Tiered pricing protects your calendar and your sanity.
Serve first, sell second — People-centered operations create lasting results.
Test, then decide — Every experiment needs a clear timeframe before you judge it.
If you want to see Jesse’s approach in action, join us for our free People-Centered Operations for Managers workshop on September 16th.
We’re capping it at 20 participants — and once we run it again, it’ll be a paid event.